This is my third book by Jaime and I have loved every single one! Not only is Jaime a sweet person, she is a talented author and I will read everything she writes! Her books have a great cast of characters, who are multi layered and relatable and not at all overwhelming. She makes it easy to differentiate the characters from the beginning so it’s easy to keep them all straight! I loved the way this book had the dual timelines, going back to a fateful night of Scarlett and Pepper’s senior year of high school and then flash forward 2 decades. The books starts with an accident and sucks you right in from the first chapter. You know something isn’t right, but you have no idea how completely messed up everything actually is! I loved the look at female friendships and relationships in high school and as an adult. Getting to see everything through Scarlett’s POV was great, but when the story flips and you get another POV, then another! It really opens it all up!! And just when the twists are out and you think you finally have everything figured out, you don’t!! There’s more! There’s always more with Jaime!! The ending was perfection for me. Mostly. I won’t give anything away! This book is a must read for all thriller lovers!!

I absolutely loved every twisty moment, the multiple POV, and dual timelines. Every time I thought I figured it out, in normal Hendrick’s fashion you are thrown for loop after loop. You are definitely not going to want to missing this one because it is on fire!

A Lovely Lie is an exciting, page-turning psychological thriller. After a celebratory senior picnic, a tragic accident occurs, resulting in the death of two students. Pepper and Scarlett were both there at the scene; however, when the police question them the next day, both deny any knowledge of the incident. Then, Pepper disappears. Twenty-tw0 years later, Scarlett is working at a local hotel when a young women accosts her and identifies herself as Zoey Wilson, Pepper's daughter. Moreover, Pepper is dead and Zoey wants answers.

A Lovely Lie is well-written, fast-paced, and filled with all sorts of twists. I enjoyed the multiple POVs and dual timelines. The characters are all well-developed, with some being extremely unlikable (not a bad thing in this case). This story has a ton of layers and plenty of surprises/reveals. I was totally at the edge of my seat while reading this book. I will highly recommend to anyone looking for a gripping thriller.

This was a good read! It’s written well. Starts off strong, draws your attention! I loved all the twists and turns!

I always love a book with two timelines and this one was no exception. Scarlett and Pepper are friends from high school having what one could claim was a typical night in high school. At a party, underage drinking and unfortunately both were involved in an accident. They were not truthful to the police to what exactly happened but they were determined to walk away from the consequences.

Fast forward 20 years, and we find out Scarlett and Pepper haven’t spoken since that fateful night. In fact, Scarlett married Pepper’s ex boyfriend living her life with her son and husband. One day, Pepper’s daughter Zoey shows up on Scarlett’s doorstep trying to understand who her father is. Zoey informs Scarlett she’s found a letter from long ago that left more questions than answers. In the wake of her mother’s death she now wants to use her investigative skills to find out more about who her mother was and who her real father is. Scarlett is desperate to stop Zoey from digging up details from that night as she doesn’t want any of her secrets revealed! Zoey of course will stop at nothing to get answers.

This is my second book by this author and I am loving her books! I devoured this one in one afternoon as it kept me wanting to flip “just one more” page! I loved the tension between Zoey and Scarlett as I wondered just how far each would go. Just when I thought I had figured their relationship out, Jaime threw in a few twists and definitely had me fooled! I really enjoyed all of the characters long standing relationships since high school and how they really had a lot of history together. The betrayal runs deep in this book and I absolutely positively loved all of it. Trust me, nothing is as it seems and I was shocked until the end! I will continue to read Jamie’s books and am excited to see what she comes up with next!

A car accident back in Scarlett's senior year holds painful memories for her. Fast forward twenty-two years and Scarlett is married with a son. When a young woman turns up claiming to be the daughter of her high school best friend, Scarlett is shocked. Zoey also comes bearing a letter that her mother penned for her. It looks like that accident all those years ago has not been forgotten after all...

Oh My Word! This book was so riveting, I can't even express into words how intriguing it was. The fast paced story with short chapters, multiple POVs and dual timelines had me constantly reading and wanting to know what was going to happen. So bingeable, I guarantee you'll love this one if you're a big thriller fan. This was my first book by this author but definitely won't be my last.

Why did I pick this book up late in the day? I should know by now that anything that this author writes is going to be binge worthy and needs to be read in a single sitting. If I hadn’t been so tired ai would have stayed up all night and finished it. As it was, I polished the second half off the next day. What a page turner! If you are looking for a great thriller, this is the book for you.

Lies told 22 years ago are coming back to haunt this awful bunch of characters. In their senior year, 2 classmates were killed, and others made up stories about what happened to save their own bacons. But now, questions are being asked and the truth is always going to come out.

At times there was not one character in this story that I actually liked. That changed through the book, but still, they really were nasty. So many lies, so many selfish and manipulating people. Truely awful people. The ending was perfect!

Thanks so much to Penzler Publishing, Scarlet and Thriller Book Promotions for my advanced copy of this book to read. Out on May 28th, a must read.

"You have no idea about the backstabbing that goes on when people pretend to be friends"

Pepper and Scarlett were bestfriend when they were in senior year, but after "the accident" happened which they made a deal never to be mentioned again, Pepper moved to NY and they lost in touch.
Twenty two years later, Zoey, Pepper's daughter, comes up at Scarlett's work place at a hotel in Florida, hoping to find information about whose her father is.
Zoey's appearance will reveal their senior year's dark secret and someone is going to pay the price.
Scarlett has told a lovely lie since she was eighteen, and it's now almost twenty two years later that she's about to find out everything.

A suspense drama full with lies, betrayal, and jealousy that deserved to be in your TBR list if you love a fast paced read. And the ending just made this book the best one. 👌
It's amazing what people can do on the name of love 😱

This is a juicy popcorn suspense packed with secrets and tons of drama. I liked the way this was told in dual timelines and multiple POVs.

Hendricks does it again with one of her twistiest ever! Told in multiple perspectives and time periods 20 years apart - it centers on the secrets and lies of a group of high school friends. The truth about what happened on that deadly graduation night won’t stay buried and someone is going to pay the price.

"Well, I told that lovely lie when I was eighteen, and I've regretted it ever since. It's almost twenty-two years later. Not this time."

In A Lovely Lie, everybody is lying. Everybody is keeping secrets, some more dangerous than others, but they're all going to be exposed. There's only so far that loyalty between friends, husbands, wives, daughters, and sons goes, and when Zoey is determined to find out not only who her father is, but also what happened to him, the carefully plotted deceptions unravel.

Jaime Lynn Hendricks gets me every time. Every single time. when I think Jaime can't top her last book, she does, and it's happened again.

Awesome. I freaking loved this book! So much drama and so many lies. I really never knew what to believe. Jaw dropping twists all the way through. Fantastic book! Thank you NetGalley for this arc

This book transported me back to when I lived on the Florida gulf coast! The imagery was vivid and familiar and the storyline was engaging!

I loved the quick pace of this book yet the unraveling of the ‘lovely lie’ was a slow burn with so many red herrings! Each character had some flaw that made me consider them as the link to the mystery and I couldn’t read fast enough to find out the truth! I really felt for both main characters, Scarlett and Zoey, in how each had to come to terms with the hand they were dealt. I enjoyed the alternating timelines with flashbacks from different perspectives and to see how each character evolved throughout the book. This was a super exciting and suspenseful book that I tore through in a day!

A captivating novel that poses thought-provoking questions about the nature of truth and the consequences of deception. With its well-drawn characters and skillful storytelling, it is a compelling read for fans of mystery and drama alike.

Thank you NetGalley and Penzler Publishers, Scarlet for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

ALL GAS, NO BREAKS. Okay, bad joke but this was incredibly fast-paced. So many secrets and twists, yet it never felt inauthentic. Some of them were pretty obvious but others shocked me! Highly recommend

Rich in unreliable narrators and multiple POVs, this book is going to keep you guessing as you read!

It took me a while to get into the story and frankly everyone (almost) is completely unlikable at first!

This book will arrive just before summer begins - and what better way to start off the summer than with the senior picnic?

Special thanks to NetGalley and Penzler Publishers for a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

I love books that take place present day but flashback and teach us that our past is never truly behind us. A Lovely Lie kept me guessing and had me completely enthralled. The characters were complex and the relationships even more so! I had no idea who I could trust, who was reliable, and who (if anyone) I even liked!

The dynamics among Pepper, Scarlett, and Vince were baffling and made for stellar reading. How Vince went from Pepper's first love and high school sweetheart to Scarlett's husband was nothing short of thrilling. It made me sad for Scarlett that her life was built in Pepper's shadow and that besides her son, she didn't have much fulfillment or happiness in life. These deeper seeded emotions and character depths really drew me into the story and kept me guessing about what was really going on.

Zoey was a conundrum to me. There were chapters she annoyed the heck out of me and other times when I was cheering her on, loving her tenacity. She was an integral part of the story, and ultimately she won me over.

Hendricks wove so much detail and nuance into her characters that admittedly, I overlooked things I normally wouldn't. I loved hopping on board for the ride and allowing myself to be surprised with every turn. I got totally swept up in this read and enjoyed every minute!

This was my first novel by Hendricks and let me tell you, the hype is real! I've heard nothing but glowing reviews for Finding Tessa and I'll be excited to check that one out next!

A huge thank you to Thriller Book Lover Promotions for getting me to finally read Hendricks and a thank you to Scarlet for the copy.

Thanks @netgalley and @penzlerpub for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I am reminded of how much I love this author’s books. There were so many twists in this one and I couldn’t stop reading it. I appreciated the multiple points of view. She had me hooked right until the very last page. Definitely check this book out when it hit shelves in May 2024. This was a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for me. #avivaandfriendsrecos

Such a crazy, fun, thriller! I read it in a day because I had to know what happened.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️! You didn’t know who to trust, and it was not predictable, which I appreciate!

Jaime Lynn Hendricks is an auto-buy author for me. I loved I Didn't Do It, It Could Be Anyone, and Finding Tessa, so I was very excited to get an early copy of this one.
A Lovely Lie pulls you in from the first chapter and doesn't let go until the very end! Dual POV's, complex and distasteful characters, and for those of us who have a soft spot for the 90's, you will love the flashbacks!
Imagine holding in a deadly secret for twenty-two years, only to be confronted with your past decisions by the daughter of the only other person who knows. Oh, and that other person is now dead.
It's a wild, and twisty ride, and as Hendricks does best, we are kept guessing with jaw-dropping moments. Don't skip out on this one, it's sure to be a summer hit!